The BASEBALL RELIQUARY Inc.
LEGACIES: BASEBALL
FROM FLATBUSH
TO THE CITY OF ANGELS
Sunday, August 15, 2004
~ 8:00 PM
John Anson Ford Amphitheatre
2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood, California
Admission $20 / Reservations (323) 461-3673
The Baseball Reliquary presents “Legacies: Baseball from Flatbush to the City of Angels,” an evening of music, theatre, comedy, and performance art looking at the Dodgers’ historic move from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, on Sunday, August 15, 2004 at 8:00 pm at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood, California. The emcee will be comedian Elayne Boosler, with featured performers to include Culture Clash, Heather Woodbury, Dan Kwong, Sue Raney with Carmen Fanzone, Byron Motley, Ross Altman, and Dodger organist Nancy Bea Hefley. And, as is usually the custom with Baseball Reliquary events, the audience can expect surprise guest appearances!
Admission is $20.00, with full-time
students and children 12 and under $12.00. For
ticket information and reservations, phone the
Ford Amphitheatre at (323) 461-3673 or visit
www.fordamphitheatre.org. For program
information, phone the Baseball Reliquary at
(626) 791-7647. THE PROGRAM In 1958, Walter O’Malley moved the beloved Dodgers baseball team from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in what proved to be perhaps the most controversial franchise shift in professional sports history. The westward move of the Dodgers was a watershed for baseball, heralding an unprecedented growth in the business aspects of the national pastime, but also triggering deep emotional reaction on both coasts. To the borough of Brooklyn, the Dodgers had come to symbolize the hopes and aspirations of its citizens, and the team’s departure was nothing less than a tragedy, a destruction of a culture, which left a lasting residue of resentment still felt today. And in Los Angeles, a relatively young and still evolving city, a contentious and ideological battle erupted over Chavez Ravine, the Mexican-American neighborhood designated as the site for the new Dodger Stadium.
Although the story is a complicated one and has reached almost mythic proportions in its retellings, “Legacies: Baseball from Flatbush to the City of Angels” is unique in its presentation of artists’ views of the move of the Dodgers and the relationship of baseball to community and to American social and cultural history. THE PERFORMERS
The emcee for the evening, in charge
of umpiring this extraordinary montage of
performances, will be ELAYNE BOOSLER,
one of the busiest and most popular comedians
touring the country today. Now based in Los
Angeles, Boosler was born in Brooklyn right
around the time the Dodgers were leaving, and
she vividly recalls her first memories were of
seeing “grown men cry.” A frequent guest at
Dodger Stadium for “Hollywood Stars Night,”
Boosler has thrown out the first pitch and sung
the National Anthem at stadiums across the
country, in addition to performing at charity
events for many baseball teams.
The host of "Balderdash," the PAX TV network’s
new game show, Boosler founded Tails of Joy, a
nonprofit corporation which promotes rescue of
dogs, cats, and companion animals throughout the
United States. For this event, Boosler is
donating her fee to this important rescue
organization.
The theatrical portion of the show
will include CULTURE CLASH, which,
for over 20 years, has been storming America’s
stages as the nation’s premiere Chicano/Latino
performance trio. Comprised of Richard Montoya,
Ric Salinas, and Herbert Siguenza, Culture Clash
will perform excerpts from Chavez Ravine,
their acclaimed play which leaves no stone
unturned — from Walter O’Malley to Dodger Dogs
— in its examination of the history behind the
displacement of the Mexican-American community
to make way for the arrival of the Dodgers
nearly half a century ago. |
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
Hailed by critics as “a master storyteller,”
DAN KWONG will perform his latest
solo work, Dodgertown, a tale of true
devotion to the home team and a surprising
vision at the ballpark. Kwong’s work draws
largely upon his own life experiences to explore
the personal and historical through
storytelling, multimedia, poetry, and music. One
of Los Angeles’ most creative voices, Kwong has
been the recipient of fellowships from the
National Endowment for the Arts and the
Rockefeller Foundation. His works, known for
their keen insight, dynamic physicality, and
generous sense of humor, often incorporate
baseball references and themes, such as his
earlier solo performance, Secrets of the
Samurai Centerfielder.
Further elucidating Jackie Robinson’s
role as one of the most important social figures
in 20th century American history, political
activist and folksinger ROSS ALTMAN
will perform an original composition
dedicated to the former Brooklyn Dodger great.
Writing in traditions ranging from Woody Guthrie
to Tom Paxton, Altman has composed songs on
virtually all political topics over the last 20
years and has shared the stage with such legends
as Arlo Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Sam Hinton, and
Johnny Walker. |
|
||||
TICKET INFORMATION
For tickets, log on to
www.fordamphitheatre.org or call the Ford
Box Office at 323 GO 1-FORD (461-3673). ~ This event is not endosed by Major League Baseball ~ |